User blog:Ugra Murda Kurma/Pennsylvania Dutch Christianity
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pow-wow_(folk_magic) Pow-wow, called Braucherei in Deitsch, is a system of American folk religion and magic associated with the Pennsylvania Dutch. http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amish The Amish (/ˈɑːmɪʃ/; Pennsylvania Dutch: Amisch, German: Amische) are a group of traditionalist Christian church fellowships, closely related to but distinct from Mennonite churches, with whom they share Swiss Anabaptistorig ins. The Amish are known for simple living, plain dress, and reluctance to adopt many conveniences of modern technology. The history of the Amish church began with a schism in Switzerland within a group of Swiss and Alsatian Anabaptists in 1693 led by Jakob Ammann.[2] Those who followed Ammann became known as Amish.[3] In the early 18th century, many Amish and Mennonites immigrated toPennsylvania for a variety of reasons. Today, the most traditional descendants of the Amish continue to speak Pennsylvania German, also known as "Pennsylvania Dutch". However, a dialect of Swiss Germanpredominates in some Old Order Amish communities, especially in the American state of Indiana.[4] As of 2000, over 165,000 Old Order Amish live in the United States and about 1,500 live in Canada.[5] A 2008 study suggested their numbers have increased to 227,000,[6] and in 2010 a study suggested their population had grown by 10 percent in the past two years to 249,000, with increasing movement to the West.[7] Amish church membership begins with baptism, usually between the ages of 16 and 25. It is a requirement for marriage, and once a person has affiliated with the church, he or she may marry only within the faith. Church districts average between 20 and 40 families, and worship services are held every other Sunday in a member's home. The district is led by a bishop and several ministers and deacons.[8] The rules of the church, the''Ordnung, must be observed by every member and cover most aspects of day-to-day living, including prohibitions or limitations on the use of power-line electricity, telephones, and automobiles, as well as regulations on clothing. Most Amish do not buy commercial insurance or participate inSocial Security. As present-day Anabaptists, Amish church members practice nonresistance and will not perform any type of military service. Members who do not conform to these community expectations and who cannot be convinced to repent are excommunicated. In addition to excommunication, members may be shunned,[9] a practice that limits social contacts to shame the wayward member into returning to the church. Almost 90 percent of Amish teenagers choose to be baptized and join the church.[9] During adolescence ''rumspringa ("running around") in some communities, nonconforming behavior that would result in the shunning of an adult who had made the permanent commitment of baptism, may meet with a degree of forbearance.[10] Amish church groups seek to maintain a degree of separation from the non-Amish world, i.e. American and Canadian society. There is generally a heavy emphasis on church and family relationships. They typically operate their ownone-room schools and discontinue formal education at grade eight, at age 13/14.[9] They value rural life, manual labor and humility. http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anabaptist Anabaptists (from Neo-Latin anabaptista,[1] from the Greek ἀναβαπτισμός: ἀνά- "over again" and βαπτισμός "baptism"[2]) wereChristians of the Reformation of 16th century Europe who believed in delaying baptism until the candidate could confess their faith. Although some consider Anabaptism to be an offshoot of Protestantism, others see it as a distinct movement.[3][page needed][4][5] The Amish, Hutterites, and Mennonites are direct descendants of the movement. Schwarzenau Brethren, Bruderhof, and the Apostolic Christian Church are later developments in Anabaptist groups. The name Anabaptist, meaning "one who baptizes again", was given them by their persecutors in reference to the practice of re-baptizing converts who already had been baptized as infants.[6] Anabaptists required that baptismal candidates be able to make their own confessions of faith and so rejected baptism of infants. The early members of this movement did not accept the name "Anabaptist", claiming that since infant baptism was unscriptural and null and void, the baptizing of believers was not a re-baptism but in fact their first real baptism. Balthasar Hübmaier wrote: I have never taught Anabaptism. ...But the right baptism of Christ, which is preceded by teaching and oral confession of faith, I teach, and say that infant baptism is a robbery of the right baptism of Christ...[7]:204 As a result of their views on the nature of baptism and other issues, Anabaptists were heavily persecuted during the 16th century and into the 17th by both Magisterial Protestants and Roman Catholics.[a] While most Anabaptists adhered to a literal interpretation of the Sermon on the Mount, which precluded taking oaths, participating in military actions, and participating in civil government, some who practiced re-baptism felt otherwise.[b] They were thus technically Anabaptists, even though conservative Amish, Mennonites, and Hutterites and some historians tend to consider them as outside of true Anabaptism. Conrad Grebel wrote in a letter to Thomas Müntzer in 1524: True Christian believers are sheep among wolves, sheep for the slaughter... Neither do they use worldly sword or war, since all killing has ceased with them...[8]:45 http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hutterites Hutterites (German: Hutterer) are an ethno-religious group that is a communal branch of Anabaptists who, like the Amishand Mennonites, trace their roots to the Radical Reformation of the 16th century. Since the death of their namesake Jakob Hutter in 1536, the beliefs of the Hutterites, especially living in a community of goods and absolute pacifism, have resulted in hundreds of years of diaspora in many countries. Nearly extinct by the 18th and 19th centuries, the Hutterites found a new home in North America. Over 125 years their population grew from 400 to around 42,000. Today, most Hutterites live in Western Canada and the upper Great Plains of the U.S. http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mennonites The Mennonites are Christian groups based around the church communities of Anabaptist denominations named after Menno Simons(1496–1561) of Friesland (at that time, a part of the Holy Roman Empire). Through his writings, Simons articulated and formalized the teachings of earlier Swiss founders. The early teachings of the Mennonites were founded on the belief in both the mission and ministry of Jesus, which the original Anabaptist followers held to with great conviction despite persecution by the various Roman Catholic and Protestant states. Rather than fight, the majority of these followers survived by fleeing to neighboring states where ruling families were tolerant of their radical belief in believer's baptism. Over the years, Mennonites have become known as one of the historic peace churches because of their commitment to pacifism.[2] In contemporary 21st-century society, Mennonites either are described only as a religious denomination with members of different ethnic origins[3][4] or as both an ethnic group and a religious denomination. There is controversy among Mennonites about this issue, with some insisting that they are simply a religious group while others argue that they form a distinct ethnic group.[5] Some historians and sociologists treat Mennonites as an ethno-religious group,[6] while other historians challenge that perception.[7] Conservative Mennonite groups, who speak Pennsylvania German, Plautdietsch (Low German), or Bernese German fit well into the definition of an ethnic group, while more liberal groups and converts in the Third World do not. There are about 1.7 million Mennonites worldwide as of 2012.[1] Mennonite congregations worldwide embody the full scope of Mennonite practice from "plain people" to those who are indistinguishable in dress and appearance from the general population. The largest populations of Mennonites are in India, Ethiopia,[8] Canada, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the United States. Mennonites can also be found in tight-knit communities in at least 82 countries on six continents or scattered amongst the populace of those countries. There are German Mennonite colonies in Argentina, Belize, Bolivia,[9]Brazil, Mexico, Uruguay,[10] and Paraguay,[11] who are mostly descendants of Plautdietsch-speaking Mennonites who formed as a German ethnic group in what is today Ukraine. A small Mennonite congregation continues in the Netherlands where Simons was born. The Mennonite Disaster Service,[12] based in North America, provides both immediate and long-term responses to hurricanes, floods, and other disasters. Mennonite Central Committee provides disaster relief around the world alongside their long-term international development programs. Other programs offer a variety of relief efforts and services throughout the world. Since the latter part of the 20th century, some Mennonite groups have become more actively involved with peace and social justice issues, helping to found Christian Peacemaker Teams and Mennonite Conciliation Service.[13] Category:Blog posts